DCED ... in practise from the Pacific to Africa, by Mihaela Balan (DCED)

1. DCED … in
practice
from the Pacific
to Africa
Addis Ababa
Results Measurement Session
6 November 2012

2. The projects …
 Solomon Islands Cocoa Livelihoods
Improvement Project (CLIP): in cocoa
sector value chain (the Pacific).
vs
 Southern Africa Seeds and Markets
project (SAMP): in seeds sector (Southern
Africa).
 Both work in input markets but also support
the development of the “output” markets (
including export market for CLIP and
agrodealers network for SAMP)

3. The Pacific:
Cocoa Livelihood Improvement Project
(CLIP)
 The AU$5.15m project, was funded by AusAID; the overall aim
was to enable rural villagers in Solomon Islands to earn regular,
reliable as well as sustainable income from growing cocoa.
 Through its activities CLIP specifically aimed to: Increase cocoa
exports from 4,500MT (2009) to 6,000MT in three years (2012),
10,000MT in five years and 15,000MT in ten years;
 It was initially part of Agriculture Livelihood Program (ALP) but
when ALP finished in 2009 GoSI & AusAID decided to continue to
support the cocoa sector: 2009- until June 2011; one more
extension year was later added (2011-2012)
 In the extension phase CLIP was placing a particular emphasis
on “scaling up” its approach by intensifying what has worked well
in the past.
 expand the outreach of its partners (public and private) with
improved and sustainable services, inputs;
 facilitate copy-cat type of behaviour.

4. CLIP logic… Substantial increase in
rural incomes for cocoa
farmers
Farmers increase in cocoa Increase in SI
production exports
Farmers
Farmers improve
Increase in
quality of cocoa
productivity
Increase use of Upgrade
quality Increase Improve
processing marketing
planting application
facilities activities
materials of IPDM, rehabilitation

5. Southern Africa:
Seeds and Markets Project Project
 The three year (2010-2013) $3.6m SDC funded project aims to
improve availability and access to quality seeds across three
countries in Southern Africa (Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Lesotho)
through piloting a number of interventions in input and output
markets and accelerate pro-poor growth: Community Seed
Production , Seed Fairs, Agro-dealer strengthening and Contract
Farming.
 These interventions, once tested and proven successfully, will
contribute to “improved seed security strategies and policies
being adopted in the region”.
 The project works with the private and public sector, especially
government departments and International Agricultural Research
centers involved in seed research and production and agricultural
extension and the private sector players in the seed and
agriculture crop commodity contract growing.
 Through its activities SAMP intends to reach over 24,000 small
farmers and SMEs by end of the project, June 2013.

6. What is the projects approach to
measuring results:
 Both embarked on the use of DCED
Standard (early 2011 CLIP, mid 2011 SAMP)
 Both followed the “Process” Standard in RM
 Both had a pre-audit (on compliance with
the DCED Standard) conducted (March
2012 CLIP, May 2012 SAMP)

7. Steps in Measuring results – “the process”
1. Articulate Result chains for each
intervention
2. Define Indicators of change
3. Predict Change in indicators
4. Developing a Plan to MR
5. Collecting data and Estimating
Attributable Change
A Process
6. Analyze and Report Results
Standard
7. Learn, Use and Improve……. ( and
when needed back to 1.)
7

8. Results Measurement System in action
Event Process
External
8

9. The Results for each on…
 The use of the DCED Standard
 The impact benefits achieved

10. Cocoa Livelihood Improvement
Project (CLIP) RM System
highlights
 CLIP had a logframe but also designed 7 RCs for
its interventions in input and outputs markets that
“mirror” , though in much more details, the
logframe.
 The process to use the Standard started in 2009 –
2010.
 The M&E System , based on the DCED Standard,
was finalised in early 2011
 CLIP worked closely with the Ministry of Agriculture
and Livestock including involving them from the
very beginning in developing the project M&E
system

11. Key DCED element in CLIP: Predicting
changes
 CLIP developed its predictions for the project key
indicators in 2011 (once the system was put in place)
 Staff was aware of what they had to achieve and what
was their contribution to change
 Through its activities, by June 2012 CLIP has contributed
to an accumulated additional income increase of nearly
$1.8 million (2011+2012) for over 2,800 farmers who sell
wet beans, providing full time labour equivalents in
employment (FTE) for over 370 people in 2011 and over
1,000 in 2012.
 Additional production of wet beans (due to CLIP) will
increase from over 1,200 tonnes in 2011 to over 2,700
tonnes in 2012. At the same time, additional production of
dry beans (due to CLIP farmers buying and selling dry
beans to exporters and traders) will increase from over 560
tonnes in 2011 to over 1,200 tonnes in 2012.

12. Key DCED element in CLIP: Clarifying what each intervention
wants to achieve from activities to impact : use of Result Chains
Impact at Poverty Increase in income Increase in employment
Enterprise level Increase in yields, production
(competitiveness)
Farmers use quality seeds appropriately
Other Farmers are influenced by
during cultivation
benefited farmers and use quality
seeds
Support Market Farmers get information from
Outcome trained retailers on benefits and
usage of quality seeds
Seed retailers who are more knowledgeable on benefits
Other Seed retailers seek
and usage of quality seeds share this information with training on benefits and
Support Market their client farmers usage of quality seeds
Outputs Seed retailers trained on benefits and
usage of quality seeds
Seed company assisted in
preparing training module
Activities Identification of a seed company
interested in providing training to 12
retailers

13. The Results in CLIP…
 Has the approach worked?
 Have the targets been achieved?

14. Results: but credible results
The use of DCED made CLIP offer credible results to donor
(AusAID) and other stakeholders:
 CLIP would have needed more time to fully institutionalise the M&E System. Only one
year was not enough (2011 to 2012).
 The team ( + 2 M&E advisers), have worked tirelessly to have a robust M&E system in
such a short time.
And the results are impressive:
 By 2012 more than 7,845 farmers and other enterprises reached against target of 2,800
(+180% above the target)
 More than half (+4,300) were copy-cat farmers
 By 2012 $14.9 million of income increase achieved against target of $1.8 million
cumulatively (8 times the target).
 By 2012, 3,493 full time equivalent new jobs per annum are estimated to be created
against target of 1,000 (3 times the target).
 These results are expected to double by end of 2014. (CLIP reached the “tipping point”)

15. Results: involving MAL in M&E created the
first steps that lead to institutionalization of
measuring results in MAL
 Steps:
1. Mentoring MAL during project implementation
combined with more formal M&E trainings for MAL
Officers in 2012.
2. A further training course (TOT) was conducted for the
next line of extension officers and trainers in the last
week of May 2012.
 …The principles of M&E were much appreciated by
the officers who indicated that they will use it as a
tool for implementing their projects and programs.
…..CLIP Final report July 2012 states that “M&E is
currently institutionalised in the extension service,
not only for cocoa but for all other crops and activities”.

16. Auditing the system: pre- audit
 A DCED pre audit was conducted in March 2012 looking at 8
compliance criteria from the DCED Standard
(www.enterprise–development.org)
 “Overall, CLIP has a system in place that is partially
compliant with the DCED Standard for results
measurements.”
 47% of the “Must” control points fully compliant;
 47% partially compliant
 and only 5% non-compliant”
 CLIP project ended; so no full audit will take place, however
if MAL continues with using the system, then maybe an audit
for MAL might be conducted

17. Seeds and Markets Project
(SAMP) Southern Africa
 SAMP (2010-2013) works with partners that provide inputs
and services to enterprises as their main activity, sector
associations, NGOs, input companies and wholesalers,
large companies, and government institutions.
 SAMP had a logframe but needed to be re-designed to
better respond to the DCED approach.
 SAMP has designed over 10 interventions so far in
Community Seed Production, Seed Fairs, Agro-dealer
strengthening and Contract Farming.
 The SAMP embarked on the DCED approach in mid 2011

18. Key DCED element in SAMP: Clarifying the logic
18

19. Key element of the DCED Standard in SAMP:
Aggregating results across interventions
Intervention result chain
1 2 …6 SAMP overall Logic

20. Key DCED element : track and measure each
intervention…not just the portfolio
 Key factor that made this possible? Use of DCED Standard
meant …measuring results in each intervention, report,
learn and taking corrective action..
 Pilot intervention, if successful (results achieved..) scale it
up, if not, abandon
 The process put in place using the DCED offered credible
results on time for staff to decide and take action
 “…. If it is not producing (based on the measurement
system) what was planned do not invest anymore”
 “Venture capital” approach

21. The Results in SAMP…
 Has the approach worked?
 Have the targets been achieved?

22. Results: but credible results
The use of DCED made SAMP offer credible results to
donor (SDC) and other stakeholders:
 By end of 2012 over 10,000 farmers and other enterprises reached against
target of 12,000 (20% below the target)
 By end of 2012, 4,400 farmers were involved in contract farming These farmers
planted nine different crops on over 2,000ha across the SAMP sites harvesting
a combined crop tonnage of over 390MT against a combined target of 774MT
(+100% above the target); $138 income per farmer (almost breakeven)
 In Zim 454 farmers were involved in growing of various seeds crops , 50ha
(against a target of 65 ha) produced 27MT of seeds (200% below the target
75MT due to poor soil moisture during the growing season); $47 additional
income per farmer.
 In Swaziland 19 farmers were involved in growing of various seeds crops ,
17ha produced 34MT of seeds (target reached); $826 additional income per
farmer
 Over 5,000 farmers were involved in selling outputs through the dealers and
seed fairs, with an average additional income of $150.

23. Results: private sector, NGOs interested
in the DCED Standard for their internal
use
 Results chains are a useful management
tools for both the private sector and NGO
sector

24. Auditing the system: pre- audit
 A pre-audit was conducted in March 2012 looking at 8
compliance criteria from the DCED Standard
(www.enterprise–development.org)
 “Overall, SAMP has a system in place that is partially
compliant with the DCED Standard for results
measurements.”
 25% of the “Must” control points are fully compliant,
 65% partially compliant.
 Only 10% (two control point 1.3 Staff familiarity and 4.2.
Contribution of publicly funded programs) is non-compliant.
 SAMP is currently addressing the issues and aims for a full
audit in November 2013